Hyundai plans for 44 EV models by 2025

Car manufacturing giants, Hyundai, have announced their plan to have 44 electric vehicle models on the market by 2025.

And while this comes as good news for the global electric vehicle movement, Australia may miss out on a number of these models hitting our shores, according to Hyundai Australia’s Senior Manager, Scott Nargar.

Nargar believes Hyundai will monitor the uptake of Hyundai’s current electric models, the Kona, Ioniq and Nexo models, as well as Nissan’s new Leaf model and the Tesla Model 3, before deciding how many models to bring to Australia.

“Consumers need choice. We need more manufacturers with EV models in the market right now, and Hyundai supports competition,” said Nargar.

“We’re not going to wait for the government – state or federal – to do something to boost the uptake of EVs. We’re just going to continue to bring in a range of EV models.

“No one in Canberra can talk about emission regulations for the next three years, bit it’s critical that people in the industry keep talking to politicians, at all levels, about the benefits of EVs.”

Australia has fallen behind the rest of the world in the uptake of electric vehicles, with just 2,216 electric and hybrid vehicles sold nationwide in 2018. A lack of infrastructure and incentives have been widely blamed for the slow growth.

However, Nangar believes that EVs are still rising in popularity here, using Hyundai’s Kona as an example. The Kona has a waiting list for up to five months for the new top of the line model.